3 Misconceptions of My Career Change

24 Apr 3 Misconceptions of My Career Change

Last day of work, 4/17/14.

I made the announcement at work and on Facebook that I was leaving my full-time job, and in the last few weeks, many people wanted to know what were my future career goals or plans.  It also became apparent that people had different ideas of my career change.  I thought I’d share the top 3 misconceptions of what I would be doing and finally set the record straight.

1.  Bicycle racing team

2009 Nautica Malibu Triathlon

Many people thought my plan was to join a racing team a la Tour de France style.  Unfortunately, my interest does not cover that aspect of the bicycling sport so joining a racing team is not anything I would like to be part of or would have any interest in.  I received several opportunities to join organizations, like MESP, which does operational things like track race times for different types of multi-sport races, but I always declined the offers.  I do enjoy watching the sport and have participated in a couple of sprint triathlons in the past, but competitive bicycling is definitely not part of my future plans.

2. Start my own touring company

2010 California Coast Classic.  Can you find me?

Although this may be an eventual future step for my career in the next 5 years, it is definitely not something I was planning on pursuing in the near future.   My LTC training certainly provided the training foundation, but I still need to go out and do some tours.  I need to get the mileage under my belt and experience the touring environment before I can even think about starting my own business venture.  Many people also thought I was going to do local tours around Los Angeles.  I have some opportunities in that field, but my interest is more long distance touring rather than in the city “tour guide” type of touring.  I may entertain the possible opportunity to do short tours around LA, so if anybody has any ideas, send them to us!

3. Riding off into the sunset

2013 Joshua Tree Tour

Many people thought after I leave my fulltime job, I am going to pack all my bags and take a long journey somewhere.  This option is probably the most appealing of the 3,but it is definitely not something I was planning on doing.  The main thing that is stopping me from riding across the country or just riding long distance in general is that I made a commitment to do the cross-country ride in 2 years as a milestone ride when I turn 40.  I want to stay true to my plan and hold off in doing any other epic journeys, as I feel that I’ll be ready for the adventure in 2 years.  I need to take care of some immediate plans like sell my house and a lot of my personal possessions before I can think about doing something so grand.  In the meantime, I’m still planning on going on smaller tours like ride to Ojai or finish my Pacific Coast ride from Vancouver to San Francisco this year.  This should help satisfy the wanderlust in me.

What I’m really planning on doing

Me & My Vaya

While all those 3 options above sound very tempting, I am actually planning on cleaning up my house and getting ready to put it up for sale.  This means packing all my stuff, consolidating, and getting rid of all my possessions, either by selling, donating, or just throwing things away.  The idea there is to eliminate the biggest monthly expense in my life and dial it down to just the bare necessities, such as food and travel.  I’ll move in with family temporarily and start my job search with touring companies / organizations like Adventure Cycling Association or Backroads while I continue running this blog.   This may lead me to move to places like Portland, Minneapolis, or Missoula.  Either way extreme cold seems to be something I’ll need to embrace very soon.  Being a California native, I’m a bit apprehensive, but still look forward to it.  I hope to be able to travel with these tour companies throughout the country or even around the world if the opportunity presents itself.

So there you have it.  My 1 to 3 year plan.  Today is the first “work-day” after my former career and I am typing this entry on my iPad mini while I finish my lunch at Dennys by myself.  I feel so excited and thankful that I have this moment to do something like this.  People asked if I am worried or nervous about it.  The answer is: I am definitely worried and nervous, but excitement is the more prevalent feeling and getting up this morning was the first time in a long time that I couldn’t wait to do.  So if this morning was any indication of what I will feel in the days coming, I don’t have any reason why I should let worries and anxiety prevent me from continuing on my path.